Pictures of Cats

In the mid and late 2000s, cat pictures became a popular web search. This was partly due to online activity by cat lovers, reflecting their sincere affection for the feline form, but much of the interest revolved around humorous, irony-tinged sites.

Though gently humorous images of cats had previously been popular—notably the "Hang in There, Baby" posters that adorned children's bedroom walls in the 1980s—sharper-edged feline humor became popular in the mid and late 2000s. Notable sites include the following.

• MyCatHatesYou.com: Founded in 2001 by Microsoft programmer Jim Edgar, the site features sinister-looking cats. Edgar went on to publish a photo book with the same theme, 2004's bestselling Bad Cat: 244 Not-So-Pretty Kitties And Cats Gone Bad.

• Hitler Cats: This photoblog features "Kitlers," non-photoshopped images of cats whose color patterns are reminiscent of Adolf Hitler—particularly the bangs and mustache. A similar image was used in early 2008 for an anti-fascist campaign by Germany's Green Party.Haaretz: Germany's Green Party uses cat resembling Hitler to slam far-rightists

• I Can Has Cheezburger?: This popular photoblog, begun in January 2007 by Eric Nakagawa, receives hundreds of thousands of page views per day.AdBrite: Advertise on I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER? The site is credited with the Lolcats (laugh-out-loud cats) phenomenon. The first image posted on the site was that of a stout, bright-eyed gray cat named Happycat, with the caption, "I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER?"

Not all of the online sources for cat pictures are meant to be humorous. Many are used simply to express affection for one of America's most common house pets.

• Cat of the Day: This blog features daily user-submitted profiles of pets, including photos and biographical blurbs.

• World Famous Random Kitten Generator: As its name suggests, this site randomly displays endearing images of kittens at the click of a button.

• Catster: A social networking site for cats and their owners, featuring images and detailed profiles.

Cute Cat of the Day

Webshots: All Cat Photos

Cat of the Day

MyCatHatesYou dot com

"Other Cute Cats"

• Flickr: Badcat
• Funny Cat Pictures
• New Year Cat Photos: Pictures of Cats from Russia {{credit|connectedgeek}}
  • According to Altavista Babel Fish Translation, the caption above the first picture means "I desire in the new year so that the peace would not seem gray." If you speak Russian and can translate these phrases, feel free to leave a comment on this page's discussion board.

Cats In Sinks

Kitten Photos: The Daily Kitten

Slate Magazine: I Can Has Cheezburger?

The Wall Street Journal: "With 'LOLcats' Internet Fad, Anyone Can Get In on the Joke" (August 25, 2007)